The present invention relates in general to motor vehicle armrests and, more specifically, to a vertically strong yet laterally collapsible motor vehicle armrest structure.
Motor vehicle armrests support vertical loads. The vertical load may be from a vehicle occupant's arm resting on the armrest. Or, because armrests are commonly mounted to the inside face of motor vehicle doors, the vertical load may be from an individual opening the door and using the armrest to reach the vehicle roof.
The armrests also have lateral strength requirements. If the motor vehicle is involved in a side impact collision, there is the possibility the armrest will strike the vehicle occupant. This may be because the vehicle occupant is thrown against the armrest or because the door bearing the armrest is propelled into the vehicle occupant. If the armrest is too stiff laterally, then the potential for injury due to the armrest striking the vehicle occupant increases.
A typical motor vehicle armrest design uses a top plate and frame for structural support. The top plate and frame are clad with appropriate cushioning and finish coverings. So as to be collapsible in a horizontal direction while still providing vertical support, the top plate commonly employs an open cellular construction. Prior art motor vehicle armrests with hexagonally arranged cell walls have been used for vertically strong yet laterally collapsible armrests. It would be desirable to decrease lateral stiffness even further while still being able to support high vertical loads, to provide increased usability and durability for the vehicle occupant.